Merlin: The Return 10 Years Later
by Niffers
Summary: Merlin Returns once again to our time... but for what reason? And what does that have to do with Delilah?
1. Chapter 1

Woo! This is a story involving a few characters from a movie called "Merlin: The Return", and I just want to say I love that movie! And besides, you gotta love Rik Mayall heh. He played Drop Dead Fred in "Drop Dead Fred" lol. Anywho, enjoy.

Disclaimer: Me no owney! Me no owney! Merlin: The Return characters belong to the movie people and any characters not in that movie belong to me unless otherwise noted! But by all means, if you want to use my characters (for whatever reason), just ask! ^ _ ^

Chapter 1: Remembrance And Greetings

"You cannot go!"

"But mom…!"

"No buts! You are staying in this house tonight and that's final!" The mother said, crossing her arms in front of her chest in an authoritative manner.

The sixteen year old girl turned on her heel in a huff, let out a howl of frustration and stomped her way upstairs to her room where she slammed the door and fell onto her bed facedown. She silently fumed to herself, thinking of all the escape plans she could use but would never try out for fear of what might happen if she were caught, aggravated that she couldn't go out with her friends to go bowling. She ended up watching a movie about some girl getting transported to another realm to save her baby brother, when a flash of light appeared from her ceiling. A strange man with long hair came falling out of the light, landing on her bed nearly scaring the daylights out of her, then the light disappeared, leaving her and the strange unknown man along in her bedroom. 

She scrambled away from him and off the bed, taking a nervous defense position, when the man moved again, slightly groaning from the impact. She thought about screaming, but somehow knew it wouldn't be the wisest idea so she refrained from doing so and took to looking at him instead. He wore what looked like a gigantic nightdress under some kind of purple robe that slightly reflected the light, medallions or runes hanging from pieces of fabric at his shoulders and his wrists. He had long wavy brownish hair and as he stood up, she could make out a twisting tribal or Celtic dragon on the front of his nightdress or whatever it was. As the man brushed himself off, muttering the entire time, she took a step backward and looked around for something to use against him if he tried to attack her.

The man looked her way, stopped what he was doing, then smiled, "Why hello there, young miss." He was distinctly British, as far as she could tell from his accent, and she nearly bolted when she saw him take a step towards her. "And who might you be?" He asked gently, not at all fazed about what just happened. 

She looked at him fearfully and sputtered, "My… My n-name is Delilah… Delilah Adams." She then gathered up a bit of courage and boldly asked, "And just who the hell do you think you are, falling into my room and scaring the daylights outta me?"

He seemed momentarily surprised, but soon recovered his smile, "Oh, do forgive me, madam… I am Merlin, chief counselor to King Arthur of Excalibur (sp?)." He bowed formally, the runes at his wrists touching the floor.

Delilah's mouth dropped open in shock, " You can't… you can't be THE Merlin, of Arthur's time! That's just a story! It's not real…"

Merlin looked at her, slightly perplexed, "I assure you, Miss Delilah, that it is no story, but indeed history." He then smiled, "And as you can see, I am very much real."

Delilah smiled as she remembered the dream she just had of her first meeting with that intelligent yet witty wizard known as Merlin. They had, shortly after their first meeting, become close friends, and they still were to this very day. Of course, years have passed since she last saw him return to his time and she was now 23, a young woman with everything she could hope for. She had a sturdy job, a medium sized 3 bedroom cottage on the skirts of the woods, a little black cat named Morgana, and a baby grand piano sitting in her spacious living room. And we most definitely couldn't forget her lovable Robin's Egg Blue Honda Civic. She wasn't beautiful, per say, but she wasn't ugly. She had enough good looks to get her many boyfriends, but she wasn't very vain about it. She was of medium build, standing about five-foot-six, with alarmingly natural blonde locks and vibrant emerald green eyes that were extremely expressive. All in all, she was a very pretty young woman.

Delilah currently lived in a small city in England, with a surrounding forest and it was quiet and peaceful, and the air clear and fresh. She was originally from the United States, but she decided to move here two years ago for her job, which was designing clothing for top brands.

This day happened to be a bad day for her, however. She had just lost her job; her boss tried to seduce her but she was unwilling to sleep with him. That and her last paycheck wasn't due until next week, leaving her with little money and bills to pay. She decided to go for a walk, to ease her troubled mind and automatically thought of the little park nearby within walking distance. She gathered up a few things she would need for such a leisurely stroll and put them in her gigantic burgundy messenger bag she always brought with her everywhere, and walked out the front door before going back in and grabbing her keys really quick.

She closed the door behind her, sighing deeply, thinking, _'I wonder if anyone's hiring,'_ while locking the door without looking. Then, out of the corner of her left eye, she spotted a very familiar flourish of purple velvet. She turned to investigate, and squealed in excitement, her face alighting with happiness as she dropped her bag and ran to a familiar shape. She giggled happily, "Merlin!"

Merlin smiled brightly, laughing while saying, "Hey!" He opened his arms wide, catching her as she jumped on him, hugging the life out of him like a small child would to her father, her arms and legs wrapped around his body. His arms closed around her and he twirled her around in happiness. He slowed to a stop and looked her in the eyes, his own twinkling merrily, the marking resembling his power slightly scrunched up between his raised eyebrows. His British accent felt so familiar as he asked, "How are you?"

She blinked, refusing to answer quite yet and hugged him fiercely once again, still hardly believing he was back after all this time. She closed her eyes, hoping over and over again that this wasn't a dream, smiling still, not letting go. 

He rubbed her back gently and said in a softer tone, "What's wrong, dear?" She then pulled back to look at him, unshed tears glistening in her eyes as she sniffled, "I'm just so happy you're back, Merlin. I've missed you!" She saw him smile brightly once again and exclaimed, "Gods! I'm still kind of having trouble fully believing it!" 

He chuckled and set her down on the ground, and said somewhat teasingly, "Well, I am here and you won't be rid of me for quite a while, I'm afraid." She laughed as he hoped she would, then he grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her in for another hug, resting his head on top of hers. She reverently fingered the soft crushed purple velvet that made his outer robe, smiling at the familiar feeling, then buried her nose in his chest and took a deep breath. Gods, how she missed his unique smell. He smelled of earth, magic, and some unfamiliar yet familiar spice she couldn't quite put her finger on, and it comforted her to know he was indeed here, and was indeed staying for a while. Merlin then pulled back, and smiled once again, "Going somewhere?" 

He pointed to her bag and she sighed softly, "Yeah… I was going to go for a stroll but I didn't know you were dropping in to say hi!" She patted his arm, smiling like a little girl again.

Merlin laughed and offered her his arm, "Shall we go then, milady?" She laughed and nodded, linking her arm through his, retrieved her bag then set off for the little park nearby.

Sooooo… whaddya think? Good, bad, so far? Lemme know! Reviews are greatly desired/needed! ^ _ ^

-Niffers


	2. Chapter 2

Woo! Another chapter! Bet you weren't expecting one so soon, were ya? *winks* Well, off we go to the land of imagination!

Disclaimer: Not mine! Only Delilah Adams is mine, and Loreena McKennitt belongs to herself or her music label, whichever. Enjoy.

Chapter 2

She slowly lit the English Ivy incense that were strategically placed around her dimly lit living room, then sat down, turning her CD player on, a mix of Loreena McKennitt songs blaring through her large speakers. She sat in the mass of pillows on her floor, crossed her legs, and closed her eyes. Her kitty, Morgana, felt it was necessary to rub up against Delilah's right leg and meow at that particular time, and Delilah cracked open an eye and laughed at Morgana's demands for attention. She picked up the kitty and placed her in her lap, scratching her ears absent-mindedly. Morgana purred contently and started to knead Delilah's leg, but Delilah didn't mind. She was far too busy thinking. About what, I don't know. But it must have been important for her to not be able to hear Merlin walk into the room. He smiled at the music playing and the words sung, then stooped down onto his haunches before Delilah, still smiling. Morgana looked up at him and meowed, moving slightly to headbutt his outstretched hand, and at this point in time Delilah realized that she wasn't the only person in the room. She opened her eyes to see Morgana jump into Merlin's arms and practically lay against him as he petted her with a small laugh, he speaking the ancient Druid language to Morgana quietly. All she could decipher from it was "Good kitty", "mother", and "love". She scrunched her nose up at the last word. Love? Why would Merlin be talking about love to her cat? She shrugged it off and filed it away in her memory, then realized she was being watched. She looked him in the eye and immediately felt embarrassed that he caught her having a mental conversation with herself. His eyes twinkled in amusement as he set Morgana down, then he stood up, and offered his hand to Delilah to help her up off the floor. She grabbed it and together they hauled her off the floor, Merlin holding onto her hand a bit longer than necessary, yet she thought nothing of it, choosing to smile her thanks to him instead of voicing it. He seemed to understand and let go of her hand, choosing to walk over to the couch to sit down. She walked over to the stereo instead, and turned the volume up almost all the way on a particular song that was playing, the song being "All Souls Night". She didn't even realize it, but she started singing along with it, playing with the harmonies and the melody of the song as it played on. Parts that she didn't know she kept silent, closing her eyes and bobbing her head to the song, swaying slightly to the beat. During a musical break, Merlin decided to interrupt her little dance, "I didn't know that you enjoy Celtic music…"

She looked at him in slight surprise for she almost forgot he was there, "Oh… Yeah… I guess I've always liked it... At least for a few years now." She then shrugged, "It's good music. I dunno. I've gotten into many things since we last saw each other."

Merlin looked intrigued, one eyebrow raised, and crossed his arms over his chest, "Oh? Like what? List a few things, if you please."

Delilah racked her brain, "Well, I've gotten into going to Renaissance Faires, and I like Tribal Belly-dancing, folk-lore," at Merlin's look she elaborated, "All kinds of folk-lore, not just one specific kind. I've also been contact juggling ever since we last met, and I've studied all kinds of books on different types of magic. Hmm… What am I leaving out?" she paced slightly, one hand covering her mouth in thought, "Ah! Yes… I've gotten a Major in Fashion Design, and a Major in Illustration. I HAD a job, but you know all of that," Merlin nodded, she told him this yesterday during their walk. She continued on, "And, well, the rest you know." She sat down on the couch next to him and laid her head on his right shoulder, his arm pulling her against him as he leaned back. He surveyed the room and Delilah sighed, playing with the strips of fabric with the runes tied on the end, "Merlin… What am I going to do?"

He looked down at the crown of her head, and took a deep breath, "Well… You can start by searching the local newspaper for openings, or…" she looked up at him, "Or, you can not worry about it right now, but that never helped anyone, now did it?" He smiled and she couldn't help but smile back. 

Her eyes dropped once again, "You're right. I need to get off of my lazy butt and get crackin' on finding another job." Her eyes lit up as she suddenly thought of something, and looked back up at Merlin in slight confusion, "Hey… Why are you here, anyway? What's happened to make you come back into the future?"

Merlin sighed and his tone became a bit deflated, "Mordred's planning to kill Arthur again, and I sent Arthur into the future, more precisely this time period, and Mordred's come after Arthur. I must find him before his plans go through, and I haven't the faintest idea where he might be. Or Arthur, for that matter." He pursed his lips in slight irritation and sighed.

Delilah rolled her eyes at the thought of Mordred being in this time, then snorted at the thought of him trying to kill King Arthur. She then sat up and looked back to Merlin, her brow creased slightly, "So... If you brought King Arthur here, where's Guinevere?"

Merlin chuckled, "She is over at Lancelot's in London." At Delilah's surprised look, he hastened to add, "She insisted on it! Besides, I needed to be free to find where you lived. After all," he smiled, "I haven't seen you in years."

Delilah pretended to reluctantly agree, "Yeah… You're right. But don't think I'll let you get out of something so easily again!" she waved a finger at him admonishingly and Merlin only chuckled. She then plopped back against him, "So. When do we go?"

Merlin raised an eyebrow, "We?"

Delilah sat up again and looked him in the eye, her face serious, "Yes, we. I'm going with you to find King Arthur." She crossed her arms over her chest to emphasize her meaning.

The corners of his mouth curved upwards in amusement, "And what makes you think I'll let you go with me?" He then sat up and crossed his arms over his chest, mimicking her movements.

She smiled sweetly, "Because I'll nag you until you say yes, and you never can say no to me for long." She then beamed triumphantly.

Merlin looked from side to side, exasperated, "I should work on that, you know." He looked at her pleading expression, "Oh, alright! But you do exactly what I say while we're on this excursion, or I'm sending you straight home! This adventure will be quite dangerous, and I don't need you getting hurt. Understand?" 

Delilah nodded like an excited child, then rolled her eyes, "Merlin, every adventure we've gone on has been dangerous."

He blinked, "Oh right. Anyway, it'll be best if you arm yourself against any potential attacks." They both got up then, and Delilah followed Merlin into the kitchen, watching as he searched her bare cupboards. He then turned to look at her in slight irritation, "Do you ever stock food in your house?" 

She scoffed, "Hello! No job, remember? My check doesn't come for a while now and I don't have any money left, except for gas money. That's about it."

He then waved her response off, "No matter. We'll just rely on Mother Nature to provide us with nutrition." He then went into one of the spare bedrooms, calling out, "You better pack what you need, and make sure it will fit in that pack of yours! We're travelling light."

Delilah slightly grumbled to herself and walked to her own bedroom, to do as he said and get ready for their next adventure.

Sooooo… whaddya think? Review, please! I'd like to know what you thought of it heh. Byesies!

-Niffers


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